On the Structural Superplasticity of the Third Body According to the Model of a Mechanical (Nano) Quantum

The phasing of the friction process provides for the formation of the intersurface phase of the rubbing surfaces of the friction pair, the “third body”. In essence, the third body is a hinge of internal friction of a developed stage of joint plastic deformation of surfaces. Being a consequence of the self-organization of surface adaptation processes in the presence of environmental chemistry, the third body can have a wide range of tribological properties. These properties, in turn, are a consequence of the formation of a wide range of optimal (compatible) structures of the third body, which determines the controllability of friction. The relationship of structure and properties as the basic principle of tribomaterial science provokes the question of what are the limits of this relationship? For example, what are the minimum properties of friction and how are they reflected in the essence of the structural structure and behavior of the friction contact? The equation of a quasi-ideal solid third body under friction is obtained, which proves the existence of an elementary structural element of a solid body under friction (deformation), a mechanical (nano) quantum. A mechanical quantum, as an ideal (theoretical) crystal of atomically rough and spherical shape, is an oscillator of dynamic dissipative friction structures. The potential energy accumulated initially during the evolution of contact is further dissipated in the area of compatibility into these formed mechanical quanta of the third body (elementary tribosystem) in the form of surface energy, creating prerequisites for their elastic reversals with an abnormally low coefficient of friction between them. The efficiency of the third body is proportional to the spectrum of elastic reversals of structural shapes.